Scoop star Rufus Sewell has opened up about his "uncanny" transformation into Prince Andrew.
The actor plays the Duke of York in the new Netflix film, which also stars the likes of Billie Piper, Keeley Hawes and Gillian Anderson.
Scoop follows the making of Prince Andrew’s infamous 2019 Newsnight interview, where he spoke to journalist Emily Maitlis about his relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Related: Billie Piper remembers "goosebumpy" filming of Prince Andrew's interview for Scoop
Sewell is almost unrecognisable on screen as Prince Andrew, and in an exclusive chat with Digital Spy, he spoke about what it was like to undergo this dramatic transformation.
"When we did the first make-up, it was about four hours," he said. "It was a very interesting thing watching slowly, layer by layer, bits of yourself recede and something else comes through. And they use bits of you, and bits of the other person, until it becomes a strange mix.
"After four hours, it still looks like your face, but the idea of your own face has changed. Slowly, bit by bit, any of the things that felt weird on my face, came away."
Sewell also recalled an amusing interaction he had with an extra on set, which proved how impressive his transformation was.
Related: Netflix shares new look at Gillian Anderson in Prince Andrew movie Scoop
He said: "They let me go off on my own for a little while, and I did this thing where I went and did photos with extras of me with various potent takes. And this bloke sitting next to me, he was supposed to be an Arab leader, and he said: ‘How long have you been in the game, I don’t think we’ve worked together before!’
"And I said: ‘Ah, a few years, but I didn’t look like this obviously’. And he said: ‘How do you mean?’. And I said: ‘Well, this isn’t my face’. And he said: ‘What do you mean it’s not your face?!’. It’s make-up!"
He continued that he found the interaction "extraordinary", noting: "It meant I passed the kind of uncanny valley test, people didn’t think I was Andrew. Once I told them who I was playing, they said: ‘Oh that makes sense’. But they didn’t for a second not take me as a real person."
Scoop will arrive on Netflix on April 5.
November 2024 gift ideas and deals
Glen Powell Twisters T-shirt
The Street of Lies: An Official Coronation Street Interactive Novel
Buy Cat Deeley's This Morning outfits
Shop Sky TV, broadband and mobile
Content production intern, Digital Spy
After studying for an English degree at the University of Exeter, Erin completed a PPA-accredited Masters in Magazine Journalism at Cardiff University. She recently joined the team at Digital Spy, writing across both news and features.
Erin is a fan of all things TV, from comedy and drama to reality TV and soaps.
Deputy Movies Editor, Digital Spy
Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over seven years, mostly for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas.
Her work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema in the UK.
She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world, and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London.
Now based in the UK, Mireia joined Digital Spy in June 2023 as Deputy Movies Editor.
